St. Mary’s enrollment, science program grows

St. Mary’s School in Aliso Viejo is seeing record growth in its 2011-12 school year, according to a news release from the school.

There are 171 new students in preschool through eighth grade, bringing the total number to 720 students, which is a 15% increase over last year.

“The mood on campus is infectiously positive! In fact, after our Back to School Night presentations, we were overwhelmed with emails from parents who wrote to let us know how impressed they were with our teachers and how excited they feel about the year ahead,” Headmaster John O’Brien said in a statement.

Enrollment isn’t the only thing on the rise.

On Oct. 4, during St. Mary’s Family Science Night, the school dedicated its new Lower School Science Laboratory, which was funded by a donation from Marta and Raj Bhathal of Newport Beach.

The science program will get a boost from a partnership with the Discovery Science Center, which will help offer CSI Forensics classes, after-school science clubs and a First Lego League (FLL) Robotics Team, according to the release.

St. Mary’s School is at 7 Pursuit, Aliso Viejo. For more information on the school, visit https://www.smaa.org.

—Kelly Parker